Hamburger Mary's planning Bay View restaurant

Plans are in the works to turn a former Omega restaurant in Bay View into a Hamburger Mary's Bar & Grille, an LGBT-friendly chain with roots in San Francisco.

I spoke with franchisee Ashley Wright, who owns the Chicago Hamburger Mary's with his twin brother, Brandon. The Wrights also own the franchise system with Dale Warner of California, who owns the West Hollywood franchise; Julie Slota of Milwaukee is a partner in the Bay View restaurant, Wright said.

Wright said the restaurant, at 2130 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., would open in late summer at the earliest; remodeling plans include installing a bar, making the restrooms ADA-compliant and turning the drive-through into a lanai -- "like the "Golden Girls," Wright said -- for three-season use. »Read Full Blog Post

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Eli, no I don't feel persecuted, but it's funny how society dictates what is and what is not descriminatory. If we create something exclusive to minorities or sexual orientation its accepted with open arms. Try to create a group for white men and see society explode with anger.

Really guys? Come on. LGBT-friendly means they cater to the LGBT community. All restaurants SHOULD be LGBT friendly if they know what's good for business. I always say, the strongest dollar isn't the EURO, it's the gay dollar. Let's be honest, the gay community tends (not always) to have more disposable income, and they spend it in gay friendly businesses. Anyhow, LGBT friendly restaurants are places where LGBT people can feel free to relax and be themselves without fear of the jeering eye of people who may not agree with their lifestyle. Let's not pretend that all restuarants would are created equal and that perhaps a gay person holding another gay person's hand at say a Waukesha county restuarant wouldn't receive a few awkward glances. Just sayin' - I've been to the Chicago Hamburger Mary's and people LGBT or not love it, but they understand that it is a place of acceptance of ALL people :) I like the idea of moving to Milwaukee, but it would be nice if a few more LGBT restuarants would open on or near the bars of 2nd street.

But Hamburger Mary's isn't "exclusive," anyone can go. But, it is a place that is openly friendly to LGBT members. Do you find that "discriminatory"?

And, there is no need to create a space where white people can feel at home; that's pretty much the entire US. By contrast, there is a need to create spaces where minorities can feel relaxed without getting dirty looks, or worse. The day hate crimes and discrimination disappear completely, so will the need to create such spaces. Which, for the most part, aren't exclusive and are open to anyone in accordance with local laws requiring equal accommodation.

bdgr5 - there is no such thing as restaurants that are not hetero friendly...they all are. it IS worth noting that some restaurants are NOT friendly to gay customers even thought that is changing now that business owners are realizing that gays have some of the highest levels of disposable income of any minority group. and yes gays are a minority group they are harassed and treated as unequals STILL in the year 2011! Stick that in your pipe and smoke it.

We own a house in Bay View. We aren't gay. If the food is good, we will support this establishment. Honestly, I don't think most people in Bay View will have an issue with this restaurant. That's why most of us moved to Bay View....it isn't like other neighborhoods...and we like it that way.